AIM Letter of Recommendation

baes

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Jul 23, 2020
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As a letter of recommendation is required for the AIM application, it says guidance counselor or other appropriate school official, so can I have my principal write my AIM letter of recommendation in lieu of my guidance counselor?
 
I believe that would be fine, especially if your principal knows you better than your guidance counselor. It should be someone who is familiar with the level of classes you are taking and with how well you are performing in those classes. They should be able to state how you compare to your classmates. If they are familiar with your athletics and clubs or other ways you are involved in school, that would be helpful.
 
I believe that would be fine, especially if your principal knows you better than your guidance counselor. It should be someone who is familiar with the level of classes you are taking and with how well you are performing in those classes. They should be able to state how you compare to your classmates. If they are familiar with your athletics and clubs or other ways you are involved in school, that would be helpful.
Thank you!!
 
@brobaes , to directly answer your question, I agree with @ProudMom7 and if the instructions say "appropriate school official" and encompasses the Principal. However, I also suggest taking the time to get to know your GC, and feeling her out for her support of your upcoming applications. You stated you are also going to NASS? Then I assume you will apply to at least USNA and USCGA, plus all nominating sources and perhaps ROTC. So your applications will be very GC heavy. Arguably, the GC will do more than anyone else. It's also a good opportunity to feel her out for her level of expertise with the unique aspects of the application process, and it's up to you to get first mover advantage. You can also find out important information, such as the platforms used at your school and the culture of your school's college application process.

Because of the AIM application specifically, My DD's GC and E teacher were well aware of her intent to apply. At my DD's school, they wait until late Sept SR year to assign all students to 2 teachers for recommendation letters, as in you get who you get and you don't throw a fit, since some teachers are more popular than others. But DD spent time with each of her key teachers in the Spring of JR year, and her AP Phys teacher, a USAFA grad, made her interview with him twice before agreeing to USMA SOE/rec. Even before that meeting of teachers, the E, M, Sci, JROTC, and coaches/supervisor had written her rec letters for each application. And at that meeting, DD said they specifically looked at her and said, the one exception was DD, who would get all recs she needed and she already had them done.

Right now is the ideal time to put in the work to get teachers on board. There is no reason to wait until the "regular cycle" and rely on "Well, it's their job to write my rec letter. Why are they taking so long?" You aren't taking anything away from any student by asking appropriately - it's a lesson in "motivating your troops" to get the mission done - ie, your application elements done early, first, well ahead of the deadline. While anyone can get an A in class (unless you are on a strict bell curve), there is an element of zero sum game for college applicatons. Someone's rec letters will be first, and someone's is going to be written last.
 
@brobaes , to directly answer your question, I agree with @ProudMom7 and if the instructions say "appropriate school official" and encompasses the Principal. However, I also suggest taking the time to get to know your GC, and feeling her out for her support of your upcoming applications. You stated you are also going to NASS? Then I assume you will apply to at least USNA and USCGA, plus all nominating sources and perhaps ROTC. So your applications will be very GC heavy. Arguably, the GC will do more than anyone else. It's also a good opportunity to feel her out for her level of expertise with the unique aspects of the application process, and it's up to you to get first mover advantage. You can also find out important information, such as the platforms used at your school and the culture of your school's college application process.

Because of the AIM application specifically, My DD's GC and E teacher were well aware of her intent to apply. At my DD's school, they wait until late Sept SR year to assign all students to 2 teachers for recommendation letters, as in you get who you get and you don't throw a fit, since some teachers are more popular than others. But DD spent time with each of her key teachers in the Spring of JR year, and her AP Phys teacher, a USAFA grad, made her interview with him twice before agreeing to USMA SOE/rec. Even before that meeting of teachers, the E, M, Sci, JROTC, and coaches/supervisor had written her rec letters for each application. And at that meeting, DD said they specifically looked at her and said, the one exception was DD, who would get all recs she needed and she already had them done.

Right now is the ideal time to put in the work to get teachers on board. There is no reason to wait until the "regular cycle" and rely on "Well, it's their job to write my rec letter. Why are they taking so long?" You aren't taking anything away from any student by asking appropriately - it's a lesson in "motivating your troops" to get the mission done - ie, your application elements done early, first, well ahead of the deadline. While anyone can get an A in class (unless you are on a strict bell curve), there is an element of zero sum game for college applicatons. Someone's rec letters will be first, and someone's is going to be written last.
Thank you for the advice, @HCopter.
 
@brobaes , to directly answer your question, I agree with @ProudMom7 and if the instructions say "appropriate school official" and encompasses the Principal. However, I also suggest taking the time to get to know your GC, and feeling her out for her support of your upcoming applications. You stated you are also going to NASS? Then I assume you will apply to at least USNA and USCGA, plus all nominating sources and perhaps ROTC. So your applications will be very GC heavy. Arguably, the GC will do more than anyone else. It's also a good opportunity to feel her out for her level of expertise with the unique aspects of the application process, and it's up to you to get first mover advantage. You can also find out important information, such as the platforms used at your school and the culture of your school's college application process.

Because of the AIM application specifically, My DD's GC and E teacher were well aware of her intent to apply. At my DD's school, they wait until late Sept SR year to assign all students to 2 teachers for recommendation letters, as in you get who you get and you don't throw a fit, since some teachers are more popular than others. But DD spent time with each of her key teachers in the Spring of JR year, and her AP Phys teacher, a USAFA grad, made her interview with him twice before agreeing to USMA SOE/rec. Even before that meeting of teachers, the E, M, Sci, JROTC, and coaches/supervisor had written her rec letters for each application. And at that meeting, DD said they specifically looked at her and said, the one exception was DD, who would get all recs she needed and she already had them done.

Right now is the ideal time to put in the work to get teachers on board. There is no reason to wait until the "regular cycle" and rely on "Well, it's their job to write my rec letter. Why are they taking so long?" You aren't taking anything away from any student by asking appropriately - it's a lesson in "motivating your troops" to get the mission done - ie, your application elements done early, first, well ahead of the deadline. While anyone can get an A in class (unless you are on a strict bell curve), there is an element of zero sum game for college applicatons. Someone's rec letters will be first, and someone's is going to be written last.
I agree @HCopter. Our high school doesn't assign teachers for recs, but my son reached out to the teachers he wanted to write his recs in the spring of his junior year, and had confirmation before school let out for the summer (one teacher had all the students who wanted a rec to submit the request in writing, and he selected 10 that he would do). Then he checked in with them as soon as school started again in the fall so the recs would be done in time for Early Action. Also at our HS, the GC has over 150 students assigned to them, so the students don't have much interaction with them, unless they are having issues. So, they have a form the students fill out with detailed questions, which allows the student to present specific information that would be helpful to the rec. The form also included a list of schools and deadline dates for applications so they knew where to mail the transcripts and recs.
For students applying for class of 2028, I would also start to think about those optional recommendataions. I sat in an admissions brief last summer, and the AO recommended that the optional recs focus on a different aspect of your character than what you might get from your teachers or counselors.
 
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